adminThe families of deceased national pension scheme contributors or pensioners are entitled to a survivor’s benefit, which will either be a one-off allowance or a monthly pension. The survivor’s benefit is normally paid to the spouse and children but, if there is no spouse, then the benefit may be paid to the deceased’s parents or other dependants registered as such with NSSA.
If the deceased member of the national pension scheme contributed to the scheme for less than 10 years and above 12 months, the benefit will be a once off lump sum payment. If contributions were paid for 120 months or more, there will be a monthly pension.
The surviving spouse of a deceased member who have contributed to the pension scheme for at least 120 months is normally entitled to a pension that is 40 percent of the pension that the contributor or pensioner who has died would have been entitled to.
The children’s allowance is also 40 percent of the pension that would have been due to the contributor. This means that the family as a whole receives a pension that is equivalent to 80 percent of the pensioner’s pension or the pension that a contributor would have been entitled to had the pension been payable at the time he or she died.
The children’s allowance is not paid for each child but for the children as a whole. It is paid for as long as there is a child under the age of 18 or between 18 and 25 years who is still undergoing full-time education at school, college or university, or where there is a child over these ages who is incapable of earning a living due to a physical or mental disability.
In the event that the member is survived by children only, then the children’s guardian can claim the pension on their behalf.
Should there be more than one surviving spouse, then the spouse’s pension is shared equally among the spouses.
Although the survivor’s pension is normally 40 percent of the pension the contributor or pensioner would have been entitled to, there is a minimum survivor’s pension of US$30, which is 50 percent of the minimum retirement pension.
Retirement pensions are calculated by multiplying the contributor’s insurable earnings at retirement by the number of contribution years by 1,333 percent.
The statutory period within which a survivor’s pension should be claimed is 12 months from the contributor’s death.
However, NSSA’s general manager has the discretion to allow a claim that is submitted outside the prescribed time limit, although the pension, if approved, will then only be paid from the date that the claim was received by NSSA.
The statutory period within which a survivor’s grant should be claimed is five years from the contributor’s death. However, claims can be made later than that if they are lodged next year.
This is because the section of the regulations that stipulates the five-year time limit for lodging grant claims has been suspended from January 1, 2014 until December 31, 2014, to enable those who failed to lodge a claim within the five year period to do so.
Those who lodged a claim later than five years after the contributor’s death that was rejected for that reason can also resubmit their claim next year.
The suspension of the time limit specification applies to claims for a retirement or invalidity or survivor’s grant.
However, this is only valid until the end of next year. As from January 1, 2015, the five year limit for grant claims will be enforced once again.
The documents required for claiming a survivor’s benefit are:
- NSSA’s P9/P10 form, duly completed by the claimant and the contributor’s employer
- a certified photocopy of the claimant’s national identity card or valid Zimbabwean passport or driver’s licence
- a certified photocopy of the death certificate
- a certified photocopy of the marriage certificate or original affidavit, if it is the spouse who is claiming, and
- certified copies of the long version birth certificates of children under 18 years of age.
If a guardian is claiming on behalf of children under 18, then a certificate of guardianship is required as well. When a contributor or pensioner dies a US$300 funeral grant is also payable to the person responsible for paying funeral costs.
That is normally paid immediately provided the claimant submits the P9/P10 form duly completed by the claimant and the contributor’s employer, a certified copy of the death certificate or burial order and a certified copy of the claimant’s national identity card, passport or driver’s licence.
- Talking Social Security is published weekly by the National Social Security Authority as a public service. There is also a weekly radio programme, PaMhepo neNssa/Emoyeni le NSSA, discussing social security issues at 6.50pm every Thursday on Radio Zimbabwe and every Friday on National FM. There is another social security programme on Star FM on Wednesdays at 5.30pm. Readers can e-mail issues they would like dealt with in this column to [email protected] or text them to 0772-307913. Those with individual queries should contact their local NSSA office or telephone NSSA on (04) 706517-8 or 706523-5.
Online Reporter